Cumulative Radiation Exposure to Patients Undergoing Arthroscopic Hip Preservation Surgery and Occupational Radiation Exposure to the Surgical Team

Abstract

To quantify cumulative radiation exposure in patients undergoing arthroscopic hip preservation surgery and occupational exposure to operating room (OR) personnel during such surgery; a secondary objective of this study was to identify factors affecting radiation exposure in patients undergoing hip arthroscopy. Radiation exposure from all preoperative and intraoperative imaging studies was determined for 52 patients undergoing hip arthroscopy. Cumulative and effective radiation doses were calculated and correlated with pathology and body mass index (BMI). Badge dosimeters were worn by OR personnel to measure cumulative occupational exposure. A highly sensitive portable ion chamber was used to evaluate the radiation scatter during surgery performed on a high-BMI patient and a low-BMI patient to reflect a "worst-case scenario" and "best-case scenario," respectively. Forty-three patients underwent procedures for femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) and 9 underwent procedures for soft-tissue pathologies (ST). The median cumulative exposure was 8.6 mGy and 5.0 mGy for FAI patients and ST patients, respectively (P= .01). The cumulative effective radiation dose was 490 mrem and 350 mrem for FAI patients and ST patients, respectively (P= .47). BMI significantly correlated with cumulative exposure (P= .0004) and trended toward significance with cumulative effective dose (P= .073). OR staff cumulative occupational exposure was low (9 mrem for the surgeon). Ion chamber data showed that increasing patient BMI resulted in increased occupational exposure. The median cumulative effective radiation dose to patients undergoing arthroscopic hip preservation surgery is 490 mrem and results in an excess lifetime risk of death from cancer of 0.025%. Greater BMI correlates with increased cumulative radiation exposure and may increase risk to OR personnel. Occupational exposure to the surgical team from hip arthroscopy ranges from 7 to 9 mrem per 50 hip arthroscopies (+0.0005% excess lifetime risk of death from cancer). Level IV, diagnostic.